Clackamas County wins light-rail appeal

The Oregon Supreme Court on Wednesday dismissed an appeal of a temporary restraining order that prohibited Clackamas County from seeking financing to fulfill its obligation for the light-rail project to Oak Grove through Milwaukie and Portland.

Last week's appeal followed a series of lower-court actions seeking to halt the financing effort. The county had been pursuing financing options to meet its obligation, but a potential bond sale was canceled last week, apparently because of the appeal.

Jim Knapp, the Oak Grove resident who began the drive for Measure 3-401 on the Sept. 18 special election ballot to block local funding for TriMets $1.49 billion light-rail project, said his group would seek another mechanism to block the nearly $20 million that the county will contribute to the project. Knapp has begun gathering signatures for a referendum against Clackamas Countys Aug. 22 decision to pay TriMet for its promised share of funding light rail.